


Snippets

by ashleygail



Series: Prompts [1]
Category: IT (2017)
Genre: M/M, Tumblr Prompts, etc. - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-15
Updated: 2019-08-25
Packaged: 2019-10-10 11:50:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 18
Words: 14,617
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17425343
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ashleygail/pseuds/ashleygail
Summary: The prompts I receive on Tumblr that just aren't QUITE long enough to earn their own one shots :D





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Anonymous asked: if you're still accepting writing prompts anything that's reddie + drunk!eddie is good tier shit.

~~~~

Eddie wasn’t drunk, he would tell anybody who asked. And anybody who hadn’t asked. Anybody who even looked at him, really. It was Richie he was currently he trying to convince of his sobriety, simply trying to get some more to drink.

“Ah, ah, ah, Eddie Confetti,” Richie said, words only slightly slurred as he held the bottle from his reach. “You’re drunk as shit, I think you’ve had enough.”

“I am NOT drunk!” Eddie whined pathetically, leaning forward to rest against Richie’s chest. Richie chuckled and let his fingers run through Eddie’s slightly sweaty curls. Drunk Eddie was always an experienced that Richie marvelled in, an Eddie with slightly less fears and significantly more confident.

It also seemed like drunk Eddie could read Richie’s thoughts even better than sober Eddie could, as he pulled back and stared Richie dead in the eye and it felt like very not-so-pure thought Richie Tozier had ever had about Eddie Kaspbrak was suddenly on full display.

“I’m not drunk,” Eddie said slowly, obviously to avoid any sort of verbal slurring. “Just let me have some, Dickard.”

Stan snorted somewhere in the background at Eddie’s nickname, and Richie flipped him off over his shoulder.

“I don’t know, Eds,” Richie waggled his eyebrow, suddenly sure he could detour Eddie from wanting any more of his booze. “I’ve been drinking straight out of this bottle. Wouldn’t want those germs, would you?”

Eddie got a look of utter determination over his expression and before Richie could fully process what was happening, Eddie had pushed forward and licked length wise over Richie’s cheek.

“Juh-juh Jesus!” Bill gasped. And like hell Richie wasn’t going to let Eddie have more to drink after that. Richie certainly needed more.

After several moments of passing the bottle back and forth, Richie felt like he’d had more than enough and left the bottle for Eddie. He hadn’t been settled on the couch for very long before Eddie was dropping down into his lap.

Richie looked up at Eddie, and gave the boy an odd smile. Eddie’s returning smile seemed a little bit smug- no doubt from the feeling of finally being able to look down at Richie- before it turned a little bit softer. He reached out, grasping Richie’s cheeks and pulling him in.

The kiss only lasted a short period of time, probably mere seconds, but Richie was pretty sure the world had stopped. His heart launched into his throat and his hands twitched towards Eddie’s hips, but he never made contact.

Eddie pulled away, and blinked down at him. Richie had to clear his throat twice before he was able to speak. “What- what was that for?”

Eddie shrugged up one shoulder and blushed a little embarrassedly. “I just… Was tired of dancing around each other. I guess.”

_We’re still dancing around each other,_  Richie thought a little drunkenly. Eddie stroked his cheek softly and glanced around the room.

“Nobody was even looking at us,” Eddie said sadly, turning back to Richie with a pout that Richie just wanted to kiss right off. “What’s the point in being gay and in love if nobody sees you being gay and in love?”

_In love?_ Richie shook his head. Eddie was completely wasted, there was no way he actually meant any of that. He had just openly admitted that he’d kissed Richie because he thought everybody had been watching. 

Richie waited an acceptable amount of time so that it wouldn’t appear as though he was running away from Eddie (he wasn’t, he defintely wasn’t!) before shoving Eddie towards Beverly and making a lame excuse to head to his room for bed. He knew when he got up in the morning that his friends would all be laying somewhere thrown across his living room. 

Richie had been laying in his bed, staring at the ceiling for less than twenty minutes before his bedroom door opened and Eddie came shuffling in. He crawled up onto Richie’s bed and stared at him with wide owlish eyes. 

“I’m going to bed now,” Eddie said slowly. Richie smiled at him.

“Okay, Eds.” 


	2. 13: please don't leave me

Eddie heard a bike skittering to the ground of his driveway and he looked up to see Richie stumbling towards him. Eddie had been curled up on his porch swing, nose deep in some mystery romance novel that Ben had lent him, and he hadn’t noticed Richie coming down the room. Although, to be fair, Eddie didn’t suppose he should have been expected Richie either. Once upon a time, Eddie had been half expecting to see Richie every time he glanced around or looked up from anywhere. Happy to see his friend- not his best friend, not even his favourite friend, but the friend that made his heart race and his face heat up and his day a little bit better.

But no, Eddie hadn’t seen very much of Richie lately.  Eddie knew that he’d had a rough go of it a few months earlier, being dragged out of the closet by some jerks at the school. His relationship with some popular jock ass that the Losers never thought that Richie would ever look at. That they didn’t know he had ever looked at, let alone grown feelings for and gone on dates with. That had hurt, it had hurt like hell, that Richie had kept that big a secret from them, but what had hurt more was watching Richie pull away. Watching that boy, that relationship, become the only thing Richie had time for anymore.

Eddie didn’t know if he could blame him or not, Richie was in love. And sometimes, late at night Eddie would let himself wonder if that was what truly hurt. Richie being in love, Richie being in love with somebody that wasn’t him. Those thoughts were never allowed in Eddie’s mind during the day, was never something he ever considered if he could help it. It was easy when life was keeping Richie from him at a distance anyhow.

Now Richie was flying up his front steps, and Richie is crying, and Eddie’s heart is beating sharply in his throat. “Rich…” Eddie placed his book beside him as Richie stopped a good four feet from Eddie, breathing heavily and wiping angrily at his damp cheeks. “What happened? Are you hurt?”

Richie shook his head, letting out a shaky breath. His arms came out and wrapped around himself, seemingly trying to squeeze himself into a smaller shape. Eddie shifted over on the swing and patted the space beside him but Richie made no move to sit. “I…” Richie cleared his throat.  “Jake and I…. We broke up.”

Eddie’s eyes blew open wide and he frowned. He jumped up and moved to stand directly in front of Richie, placing a hands on his shoulder. “What happened?” He asked again, firmly this time. No more bullshit tone of voice. A tone of voice that no doubt Richie was used to from him by now. It usually brought out a grin to Richie’s grin face, a small bashful small if he knew he was being significantly over the top.

Richie wasn’t smiling now. He pulled away from Eddie, rubbing angrily at his eyes. “Nothing, it’s stupid. It just…. apparently we weren’t as serious as I- We weren’t serious. It wasn’t serious.”

Eddie shook his head, and bit his bottom lip. How could Richie say that, with how the last couple of months had been? He’d thought Richie and Jake had been the real deal. Eddie said as much, which just prompted Richie to let out a shaky, watery laugh. “Yeah, I thought so, too. I thought… a lot of things, Eddie. But it wasn’t serious.”

The two boys stood silently on the Kaspbrak’s front porch for too long, the silence tense and the furthest thing from comfortable that Eddie could ever imagine being in. It wasn’t like sitting beside Ben, reading or writing, or joining Stanley for bird watching on a warm Sunday morning. This silence was burning, filled to the brim with words that neither of them even knew how to say.

“I really did think that it was serious, you know?” Richie broke the silence suddenly. He wasn’t looking at Eddie, he was staring off to the street. “You know me, Eds, I’m never serious about anything. But I was serious about him. So fucking serious.”

“I know,” Eddie swallowed hard. Oh, how he knew. Nobody who looked at Richie and Jake could have question for a second that Richie had truthfully been devoted to his boyfriend. That Richie Tozier-  _the_ Richie Tozier- had buckled down and found somebody that he looked at with stars in his eyes. A sight that Eddie hadn’t ever thought he’d see, and certainly not something he’d expected to hit him so hard personally, but he couldn’t deny it that Richie had been serious about the relationship. “I’m sorry.”

“I slept with him,” Richie blurted out in the most Richie-like fashion. Eddie startled, having almost forgotten just how blunt his friend really was. Eddie squeezed his eyes shut, trying to blocked out the flashes in his mind of Richie and Jake. “At Stan’s birthday party.”

“At  _Stan’s.._ That was on Friday.” Eddie exhaled hard and gripped the railing so tightly his knuckles turned white. “Was that the… first time?”

“Yup.” Richie said with a pop. “Hey, maybe our relationship wasn’t serious and I’m a total idiot, but at least I got some dick, right?”

“Rich…” Eddie said in the softest, saddest voice he’d ever heard come out of his own mouth and it certainly seemed to trigger something in the air. Richie promptly broke down, a hand coming to cover his own mouth, and he quickly backed up to sit on the porch swing. Eddie followed him immediately, falling into the seat and tugging Richie close to him. He pushed his fingers through Richie’s messy, tangled curls and used his leg to rock the swing underneath them. Richie cried into Eddie’s chest, until Eddie felt the moisture seeping through his shirt and onto the skin. “You’re okay, you’re going to be okay. I promise. He’s a piece of shit, Richie, you deserve so, so much better, okay? Nobody deserves this.”

Richie squeezed Eddie’s hips tightly and Eddie’s breath caught deeply in his throat. He realized then, he couldn’t possibly deny to himself just how much he loved the boy he was holding. This poor, hurt boy that he  _loved._ The boy who was looking for comfort  _in a friend_ and okay- maybe Eddie was panicking a little.

“Eddie.  _Eddie.”_ Richie gripped him tightly and he pulled away, staring at him with tearful, broken eyes. Eddie tilted his head to side and allowed his eyes to gaze all over Richie’s damp, puffy face.

“Yeah?” Eddie breathed out.

“ **Please don’t leave**.”

“Oh, Richie.” Eddie tossed his arms around Richie’s shoulder and dragged him back in. “I’m not going anywhere. I’m right here.”

So sure, Eddie was in love with his friend. His sad, heart broken friend and it was a terrible thing. Something no short of a disaster, something that was sure to blow up in his face. Eddie could put that all aside and just  _be there_ for Richie. He was even finding that it wasn’t all that hard.

“Besides, this is my house.”

Richie laughed tearfully into Eddie’s chest.


	3. 179: first one to make a noise looses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Obviously but also kinda minor NSFW ahead, since the actual prompt mentions that it’s sexual (:

“Sssh,” Eddie slid a hand over Richie’s mouth as his boyfriend whined. It wasn’t the best place they could be doing this, ideally Eddie would’ve liked to have waited until they got back to their dorms after the party but he supposed he should have known that never would happen for them. Richie had the patience of a two year old child who was promised his favourite candy. 

“Rich, shut  _up,”_ Eddie complained quietly, not stopping the small rocking movement of his hips. Richie’s hands slid up Eddie’s chest, pressing his finger against Eddie’s nipples. Eddie moaned before trying to cover it up with a cough. Richie smirked and pressing his hips harder into Eddie’s. 

Richie had been teasing and messing with Eddie since they’d walked through the doors to Bills’ stupid frat house. Constantly touching and rubbing, pressing up against Eddie’s back and hiding his face into Eddie’s neck to press kisses where he  _knew_ Eddie’s weak spots were. 45 minutes of that and Eddie was harder than he’d ever wanted to be in a frat house, and was determined to do something about it. 

He was also, however, determined not to get caught.

“You need to be quiet, we need to be quiet,” Eddie insisted, shaking his head as Richie started pressing frantic kisses to the inside of Eddie’s palm. Eddie’s knees buckled a bit when he became aware of Richie’s tongue grazing against the skin. “Stop being a shit!” 

“Eddie!!” Richie whined against Eddie’s cupped hand, the words almost unrecognizable if Eddie didn’t have a certain skill in understanding Richie Tozier with his mouth full. Richie’s hips jumped forward, and Eddie hissed sharply as he had a terrible image of Richie breaking his pelvis. Eddie thought frantically of how he could get Richie to calm down, without utterly exposing them to every drunk chick and fuckboi on campus. 

Eddie suddenly smirked and he saw a flicker of  _something_ in Richie’s eyes. If there was something Richie loved more than Eddie (and sex was Eddie), it was a challenge. A game. So let his hand fall from Richie’s mouth, and both hands gripped Richie’s hips in an almost bruising fashion. 

“Okay, baby,” Eddie gave Richie the darkest look he could muster, maintaining the smirk. Richie’s eyes moved all over Eddie’s face, pupils blown to the point where his eyes were almost black. “I’ve got a little game for you. First one to make a noise looses.”

Richie raised his eyebrows and gave Eddie a half smile. Richie tossed his arms around Eddie’s shoulder and bounced away from the wall, jumping up onto the bathroom sink. His legs moved out to wrap around Eddie’s waist, pulling Eddie so close that Richie was practically koala’d around him.  

Eddie sucked back in a moan when he felt Richie’s erection burning into his thigh. There was  _no way_ he was going to break first, not when he made the rules. Richie, in his normal life, wasn’t very good with following directions but the second he fell into any sort of sexual situation, he was quick to do  _exactly_ as he was told until he was so utterly wrecked that he just couldn’t anymore. 

Eddie never would have imagined it, but he wouldn’t have it any other way. Richie broke every belief Eddie had ever had about sex, and brought him to a whole world he never would’ve imagine even existed. It had been five years since they’d finally crossed that line from just friends to something more, three years since tightly pressed lips had slipped open to allow exploration, and only a mere year and half since clothes got shed and tossed to bedroom floors. It had taken them a long time to finally reach that point, but everything that came with it had been easy and breezy and Eddie wouldn’t have had it any other way. 

Especially not now that he knew so well what it was like to have Richie’s body wrapped around him, to feel his pulse racing through the tips of his fingers and through his chest. And certainly not when he knew what it felt like to have Richie’s dick pressing against him while Richie rutted forward in desperation. Knowing that if Eddie told him to stop, Richie would. 

Eddie rubbed his nose against Richie’s, before leaning up to lock their lips together softly. Tongues pressed into mouths, teeth tugged at lips, and hip began rocking together once again. Eddie was a little desperate himself, not wanting this to end with him coming in his pants like he was inexperienced teenage, but part of him feared that if his mouth wasn’t completely occupied by  _RichieRichieRichie_ then he may loose his own game. 

Thankfully, Richie seemed to be following that same train of thought as his hands started rubbing Eddie’s clothed chest before tugging on the button of his jeans. Richie’s mouth closed to Eddie for a moment, lips twisting in a way that Eddie knew was describing Richie’s displeasure at how tight Eddie’s khakis were. 

Richie yanked the damned pants open at last and was quickly slipping his hand inside to palm at Eddie over his white briefs. Eddie dug his teeth sharply into Richie’s bottom lip to hold back a moan while Richie’s hips rocked forward frantically. As Richie pulled Eddie free from his underwear, taking the time to swipe at the precum that had gathered there, Eddie pulled away from the barely kissing they had been doing, and pressed his face into  where Richie’s shoulder met his neck. Sucking frantically, Eddie’s felt his breath picking up the pace to match Richie’s strokes. His whole body shook, hands pushing up under Richie’s ratty band t-shirt and clawing at the skin there, Eddie started to think he might just collapse. He really hadn’t given Richie’s early teasing enough credit, he was certainly more turned on than he’d believed. 

Eddie started rocking into Richie’s hand, bucking his hips, until Richie grabbed hold of Eddie’s ass to hold him tight against his body. Eddie gasped loudly, letting his head fall backwards, finally letting loose with a whimper of Richie’s name as he rock backwards to Richie’s gripping hand. 

Richie yanked his hands away and pushed further back on the bathroom counter. He looked more than a little obscene, hard dick nearly bursting out of the zipper on his jeans, but there was cocky smirk on his red, saliva slicked lips. Eddie whined harshly in the back of his throat, rolling his eyes towards the ceiling. “Why?”

“You lost.” Richie jumped down and pushed back Eddie, waggling his brows. “Don’t make up a game, if you can’t follow the rules, Eds.” 


	4. "it's okay to cry"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: "It's okay to cry" - Reddie. I need some Reddie fluff please. :)

A quiet Richie was a bad Richie. A very, very bad Richie. The Losers could often have complaints on Richie’s noise, his constant babblings and dirty words. Eddie could be the first- or maybe the second, under Stan- to express how much he hated most things that Richie had to say. The dirty flirting, the  _your mom_ jokes, the terrible nicknames. 

When Richie got quiet, though, Eddie got anxious. A quiet Richie was too lost in his own head, a quiet Richie could only mean that bad things had happened. Eddie had been trying to get it out of Richie all day, from the very second Richie had shown up to school wearing his glasses. Getting contacts had been a consolation prize from Wentworth when Richie had been forced to get braces in their freshman year. Come the near ending of senior year, Richie’s braces were long gone but the glasses only ever made appearances on Richie’s face when he was sick or he was sad. 

“Come over after school,” Eddie said as Richie moved to walk away as the school day came to an end. He watched Richie bite down on his bottom lip. In the past few weeks, Richie had gotten more and more experienced in avoiding the Losers Club without looking as though he was doing it. Always an excuse, something just reasonable enough that it would be believed and accepted but not a strong enough one that anybody would grow concerned about them.  Nobody except Eddie Kaspbrak, it seemed, who has always had the ability to see right through Richie’s bullshit.

“Ah, Eds, mighty fraid that I cannot do such a thing,” Richie said in a such attempt at the British Guy that Eddie was sure that he wasn’t even trying. “I told the rents that i would-”

“Another lie,” Eddie said, his anger seeping out against his will. “And a bad one. It’s Thursday, Rich. Your parents have their cooking class on Thursday nights. If you’re going to lie to me, at least tell a better lie next time.” 

An odd, questioning expression came over Richie’s face as he moved to scratched the back of his neck. “I’m not lying to ya, Eds. My parents aren’t going to go to the cooking class anymore. I guess they learned everything they needed to.” 

Eddie frowned, eyes dancing over Richie’s face. “Rich… you’ve been crazy quiet all day. I’m not going to question you in front of everybody else, because that’ll just lead to stupid deflecting until I get mad at you and let it go so-”

Richie reached out and pinched Eddie’s cheek, forcing a sharp grin. “Aww, my little Eddie Spaghetti knows we so well! He’s worried about little ol’ me-”

“Yeah!” Eddie swatted Richie’s hand away and forced himself to keep his composure. “I am worried about you! You’ve been acting off for days and I.. please come over after school. I won’t even make you talk about it if you really dont want to but we… we could have an EddieandRichie day. We haven’t had one in a long time?”

Richie smiled bashfully, glancing down at the ground as he cheeks warmed slightly. EddieandRichie days had been introduced back when they only in kindergarten back when Frank Kaspbrak was alive, and Sonia Kaspbrak hadn’t dammed Richie Tozier as the coming of end of days. It had originally been little things, whims of childhood and scraped knees. As they’d gotten older, and Sonia had tried harder to Eddie ad Richie apart, the style of EddieandRichie days changed. Started including sneaking Richie into Eddie’s house- or sneaking Eddie out of it. Had changed from games of Crazy Eights and hopscotch to passing joints back and forth while spewing out information they’d never be brave enough to tell anybody else. EddieandRichie days were no longer regular occurrences- but now something that was only was suggested when it became obvious the talk was necessary. 

“Alright, fine.” Richie agreed, still giving Eddie half a smile. “We can have some EddieandRichie time today- but I’m going to sit in your stuffy bedroom and risk getting my ass handed to me by Sonia Kaspbrak in the least sexy way possible. We’re going out.” 

Eddie stared wide eyed at Richie before coming to the conclusion that it wasn’t utter bullshit, and nodded. 

–

Eddie took the stairs downstairs three steps at a time, and barely called a goodbye to his mother as he took off out the front door. The longer he spent in her presence, the more likely she’d be to try forcing him to stay. And Richie’s nasty old pick up was already parked outside. 

Eddie let himself into the passenger seat and greeted Richie. His best friend gave a thin smile and took the vehicle out of park. Eddie’s stomach tensed slightly, and the drove in silence until Richie pulled them over up the Quarry. Eddie watched him with careful eyes. 

Richie tapped his hands against the steering wheel, exhaling hard and feeling meeting Eddie’s gaze. “No bullshit?”

“No bullshit.” Eddie confirmed. 

Richie let out another loud sigh, eyes fluttered shut. “My parents are getting a divorce. My mom moved out last week.”

Eddie blinked, more than a little caught off guard by the statement. Maggie and Wentworth might not have always had an amazing relationship, Richie had given small illusions to arguments when they were younger but that had all but stopped since they entered high school. 

“It’s stupid,” Richie said with a hard swallow. “To be upset, you know? I’m not a little kid. I get shit. Like.. they weren't’ in love with each other anymore, they still love me, blah blah blah. There’s no reason to get all emo and cry about it.”

“ **It’s okay to cry** ,” Eddie said slowly. He reached out and wrapped his fingers around Richie’s wrist and pulled it into his lap. He tangled their fingers together. “I’m pretty sure it’s a rational reaction to your parents splitting up, it’s changing your whole life.”

“Aw, nah, it’s not the serious,” Richie chuckled, but Eddie could see the tears dragging in his eyes as he ruffled at his hair. “‘Sides, I’m leaving for school in a few months. Won’t make much difference, you know?” 

“You’re upset about it,” Eddie squeezed his hand. “And you’ve been upset about it for days. I could tell, I’m sure all the Losers could tell something was wrong. Whatever you’re feeling is okay. You know, you  _can_ have emotions.”

Richie barked out a laugh and wiped at the tears that had dripped down his face. “They didn’t even fight anymore, I think that’s… you know, the worst part. That they didn’t even care enough to fight with each other.  Promise we’ll never stop fighting, Eds.” 

Eddie ignored the way his heart hammered at Richie’s comparison and smiled softly. “I can absolutely promise you that we’ll never stop fighting.” 


	5. 81: Please don't hurt me

Richie was pulling at the sleeves of his shirt, Eddie able to see how they were damp. It was an old habit of Richie’s- chewing on his clothes- that Eddie hadn’t seen in a long time. In the few months since Richie had broken up with Sandy, he’d reverted to a  _lot_ of his old habits.

She’d never been good for him, to say the least, and Eddie knew he wasn’t the only Losers who had been glad to see her go. Even with the wreck of person she’d left behind, they all knew that they’d be able to get Richie back on his feet and better than ever if only she would leave. It had taken much longer than expected, the relationship dragging on for so long that it almost had Eddie ripping his hair out, but eventually it had dropped its final shoe and Sandy had taken her leave.

Richie had taken it even harder than anybody had even expected, locking himself away and it had taken  _weeks_ for anybody to get inside the apartment. Eddie had been pretty damn close to using his spare key, and likely would have long ago if Richie hadn’t been responding to text messages. Once Richie had let them in though, flood gates had opened. Eddie had learned things about their relationship that he hadn’t even known- the cheating, the gaslighting. Things maybe part of him had suspected but he’d never wanted to give any thought to. Because Richie might have been a bit of jerk, but he’d never deserve that.

As Eddie had been helping Richie through it, he’d also been forced to acknowledge that one thought he’d been running away from since high school: how absolutely fucked-up in love he was with Richie Tozier. It couldn’t matter though, because Eddie knew better than to go after Richie in general and especially when he was in such a emotionally vulnerable state. It wouldn’t have been fair to either of them.

The last few weeks, however, Richie had seemed to be getting better- and growing even closer to Eddie. He’d always been flirty, touchy,  _Richie,_ but suddenly the touches were softer and they lingered and the jokes didn’t seem too much like jokes anymore. Eddie tried not to let himself think too much on it, but he couldn’t hold his brain back from wondering. From fantasying over the potential that maybe… _maybe…_ Richie Tozier may be falling in love right back.

He still, of course, had ignored it as long as he could until he’d reached the text from Richie that morning:  _come over. i need to talk to you._ Which had brought Eddie here, sitting across from Richie on the bedroom floor, with Richie’s wet sleeves.

“So,” Richie said, forcing a little laugh. “I guess if I jump right to it here- I think I may have fallen in love with you. Surprise.” 

 _Ripping off the band-aid_ , Eddie thought mildly to himself. He couldn’t think of anything to say, simply staring at Richie until the other man let out a shuddering sigh.

“Stan said… I don’t know, he said he thought you loved me, too, and maybe you don’t-”

“I do,” Eddie said, the words that had been stuck inside his throat for near on seven years coming out like the easiest thing he’d ever said. “I love you.”

Richie laughed lightly, eye brightening. “That’s… good, yeah. That’s good. But I… you know, I’m pretty fucked up and if we…” he shook his head. “We could be good, cuz, it’s  _us,_ yeah? But we need…”

“If you’re not ready for another relationship after…  _her…_ then I get that,” Eddie cut across, heart racing. “That’s one the reasons I didn’t say anything, because I would never want to rush you into anything that you’re not-”

“I am ready,” Richie cut across, looking scared and oh-so- unlike Richie Tozier in that moment that Eddie’s heart longed to hold him. “I’m ready to date again, but I’m not… I’m not ready to get hurt again. So…” Richie rubbed his lips together and looked down at his hands. “ **Please don’t hurt me.”**

Eddie made a small, sad noise and before he could think he was crawling into Richie’s lap. Richie made a matching, startled noise and looked up at Eddie with starry eyes. “Kaspbrak,” he said, giving half a smirk in greeting. “You comfy there?”

Eddie reached up with shaking hands and cupped Richie’s cheeks gently. “Richie Tozier, you annoying insufferable idiot… I would  _never_ hurt you. Couldn’t even if I wanted to.”

Richie gave a soft smile, nudging their noses together. “Well then… are you going to kiss me now or what?”


	6. high school popular kid & nerd au

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> requested by ameiladams on tumblr!

Richie had gotten better at dodging bullies, but that wasn’t to say he was  _good_ at it. He was still half blind with his glasses off, but sometimes being blind was better than wearing those giant coke-bottle rimmed fucks. 

“Watch where you’re going, Bucky Beaver!” Patrick Hockstetter- at least it sounded like him, but Richie couldn’t see so- shouted after him down the hallways as he and his dirty douche bag friends walked away. Richie let himself slump against the lockers and whacked his head against it. 

“Fucking Hockstetter…” A voice said near Richie as he felt the weight of somebody coming to kneel in front of him. “Where are you glasses, Tozier?”

Richie’s heart started racing. He knew that voice, but it wasn’t possible. He’d hit his head against the lockers too hard because there was  _no one_ King of Track Kaspbrak was not only talking to him- but using his name. But hey, if his concussion induced hallucination was going to be this nice- he’d play along.

“They’re in my bag,” Richie groaned, rubbing at his forehead. “Unless Hockstetter took it and is flushing it down the toilet right now.” 

Eddie Kaspbrak made a sympathetic sound. “They didn’t, it’s right here. You’re really on you, huh? They’re such assholes.”

Eddie slipped Richie’s glasses on his face- no, he didn’t hand them to Richie like some normal fucking person- he  _put_ them on  _Richie’s_ face.  _Eddie Kaspbrak._ He was suddenly visible in all of his glory, freckly nose and soft hair and clean Letterman Jacket. Richie’s heart might have have been having a seizure. 

“Why…” Richie cleared his throat awkwardly. He didn’t trust this. He  _did not_ trust this. “Why are you being nice to me?”

Eddie blinked at him, brow furrowing. “Why wouldn’t I be nice to you?”

Well damn. Richie didn’t have an answer to that. Eddie let out a small laugh.

“Come on, Richie,” Eddie held his hand out and helped Richie to his feet. “Let me buy you chocolate milk.”

“How do you know I like chocolate milk?”

Eddie looked at him as though he was crazy. “Everybody likes chocolate milk. Come on.”

Richie walked a little bit behind Eddie, dazed and supposing that he should accept the small universe miracles when they came.  


	7. falling in love with your best friend's partner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> angst alert!

Eddie Kaspbrak was too drunk for somebody with a such a deep, relevant secret. 

“Don’t worry,” Richie Tozier was saying, letting Eddie’s arm card around his shoulders. He smiled at his girlfriend- Eddie’s best friend since childhood- and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I’ll get our lil Eds to bed safely. You go take care of Bev, I’ll call you later.”

Audra smiled sweetly- sickeningly- and patted Richie’s cheek before kissing him lightly. Eddie’s stomach churned, likely not from the alcohol but he enjoyed the possible excuse it gave him if he needed it. 

Eddie and Audra had been friends for a long as Eddie could remember. Growing up, the Philips had been the only people Eddie’s mother had deemed as decent people. They’d been absolutely inseparable their whole lives, it had been no question that when Audra asked Eddie to move across the entire country with her to start some pipe-dream acting career, Eddie was down.

That was before Audra had started dating one Richie Tozier, and Eddie’s entire life had gotten complicated as all fuck. Richie Tozier was a comedian in the works, interning at Saturday Night Live. In the past few weeks, Richie even appeared briefly in sketches. It was, in fact, what they were celebrating tonight. He was tall and shaggy haired, and yeah, loud but also fucking hilarious. In short, it hadn’t taken Eddie very long to fall head over heels for him- his best friend’s boyfriend.

Sure, Eddie had met Richie first. They’d gone onto a few dates, but Eddie hadn’t been ready to commit to any relationship. He hadn’t gotten to date when he was living in Derry, forced into the closet, and there was whole world of boys out there that Eddie wanted to meet. He wasn’t going to tie himself down to the first pretty boy who gave him attention in Hollywood. Richie had been more than understanding, and Eddie hadn’t seen a problem with staying friends- because Richie was great- and he hadn’t even seen a problem when Audra had confessed to growing to have feelings for Richie and expressing the want to ask him out. Eddie hadn’t wanted Richie. He just hadn’t seen the problem.

He sure as hell saw the problem now. 

“I love Audra,” Eddie slurred as Richie dropped him down onto his own bed. “She’s- she’s good people, you know? I love her  _so much.”_

 _“_ Yeah, she’s great,” Richie said, and he sounded so lovesick, so geninue that Eddie’s groaned.

“And I love you, too,” Eddie said slowly, shaking his head slightly against the pillows on his bed. “I love you, Richie.”

“Yeah, Eds,” Richie said, and Eddie could hear his confusion even in his drunken state. “I love you, too.”

“No,” Eddie closed his eyes, then used his hands to cover his face for good measure. “I  _love_ you. I’m in love with you. I’ve always loved you, I think. But I wasn’t ready to tell you before, and it’s too- too complicated to tell you now. I’m sorry.”

There was a long period of silence, then Eddie felt his large comforter getting tossed over him. “Get some sleep, Eds.”

Footsteps. Bedroom door clicking shut. 


	8. meeting at a support group au

Richie hadn’t wanted to go to the fucking support group. He didn’t  _need_ a support group, he had more than enough support from his friends- thank you very fucking much. It wasn’t like he was that upset about it, even. He was more than functioning. He thinks for the circumstances, he might as well be thriving!

Bill had insisted it had really helped him through what happened to Georgie all those years ago. “It had been the uh-uh-only thing that ruh-ruh-really helped at all. Being with puh-puh-people who understand.”

So here Richie was. At a support group for people going through a loss. He sure as hell would have left by now, but the guy walking up to podium was cute as shit so Richie stayed in his seat.

“It’s so weird,” the man said, smiling softly towards the auditorium full of people. “For me at least, when people say they’re sorry for my loss. You know? I don’t really feel like I’ve lost anything, and even if I did… when does it stop being a loss and just start being part of my life?”

Richie raised his eyebrow. 

“Most of you guys know me by now, I’ve been coming here a few months. I’m Eddie.” He said, scratching nervously at the side of his head. “My dad died when I was five, he had cancer. He was sick most of the time I knew him, and I’ve lived more than four times the amount of my life without him than with. I have friends that I’ve known longer.

My mom died six month ago. Stroke. Very sudden… I guess. I didn’t see it coming, but she’d been pretty unhealthy all my life for somebody who was so passionate about my own. Maybe if she’d focused on herself a little more and on me a little less, she’d be alive. Maybe not. I don’t know, but after she died my doctor suggested I join this support group to talk myself through it but really? I’ve only really talked about my dad since I got here.

“My ma was kind of a bad mom, you know? I guess she tried as best she could, but it wasn’t good. She smothered me and I always wondered who I would’ve been if she’s just let me be myself. Even since she died I’ve been trying to be more open about myself. I came out to my friends, I left my fiancee. I was tired of hiding, and there was nobody there to make me feel like I had to anymore. But I also wonder if I would’ve ever had to hide it if my dad had lived. So many I did loose something.”

 _Maybe I did loose something._ Those words, seemingly more than anything else, struck deep in Richie’s chest and he suddenly felt  _so much_ that he couldn’t even explain and he just knew he had to get out of there. Scraping his chair back against the floor in a way that would no doubt leave an ugly mark, Richie rushed from crowded room.

He pressed himself up against the brick wall outside and fumbled with his pack of smokes and lighter. The sound of footsteps following him made his shoulders stiffen. 

“Those things will kill you,” Eddie’s voice carried over to him, sounding soft and more human when it’s not being projected out of a microphone. 

“Everything will you, sweet cheeks, isn’t that the lesson in all this?” Richie laughed bitterly. “And the way I see it- if it’s everything will kill you, then do what makes you happy.”

“Smoking makes you happy?” Eddie challenged. “You don’t  _seem_ happy.”

Richie chuckled his tongue. “That’s because you’re interrupting me, hot stuff. I’d be happier if you let me finish what I started.”

Eddie gave a small smile. “What are you here for? Forgive me for judging so quickly, but it doesn’t seem like you’ve doing this long.”

“It’s my first meeting, I told my best friend I’d give it a try. His brother was killed in some accident when we were kids and he said it really helped him. Whatever.” Richie said then his chest filled with that tightness again. “It’s my parents. They died in an accident a few weeks ago. Some drunk driver drove them off the road. Docs say it was quick, you know? May not have even felt anything. Guess that’s good.”

“There’s no good way to loose somebody,” Eddie said.

“I thought you didn’t like that term.” Richie replied cockily, with a waggle of his eyebrows. 

“I don’t really like it for my own situation,” Eddie said with a shrug. “But I feel like it applies to you. You were close to your parents, yeah? It’s all over your face.” 

Tears suddenly burned at Richie’s eyes and fisted them away. He felt Eddie’s hand settle on his wrist. “Come back inside. I really do think you’ll find it helps.”

And well.. it’s not like Richie had anything better to do that night. 


	9. childhood best friends au

Meeting Richie Tozier had been because of Bill Denbrough. They’d been all of five years old, and Bill had decided that his sweet neighbour friend needed to make more friends out in the world. Somehow those friends had included the trashmouthed boy with the messy face and curly hair. Bill had raved about Richie, claiming that Richie was the best boy he knew.  “He’s a luh-little luh-luh-loud,” Bill admitted to Eddie as they made their way to public park to meet with Bill’s other friends. “It’s huh-huh-hard to get used to, but Ruh-Rich is guh-good people.”

Becoming friends with Richie Tozier had been an act of self preservation. Richie had been more than just a little loud- he’d latched onto Eddie by a vacuum to dirt and hadn’t let go. Eddie had run away from it for ages, absolutely refusing to have anything to do with the dirty boy. This only seemed to make Richie fight all the harder for his attention. Stanley Uris had confirmed this one day, after a wildly exhausting day. “Just stop giving him the attention of you hating him,” Stanley had said wisely. “He just wants you to be his friend. Tell him you’re friends, and he’ll calm down. You don’t actually have to like him.” And well, if anybody knew how Richie Tozier worked then it was Stanley Uris. So Eddie had told them they were friends, and Richie had giving him that bucked toothed grin.

Actually starting to like Richie Tozier, though, that was something that came with time. Had something to do with a clown, an broken arm and Richie cupping his face in his hands. Eddie couldn’t recall all the details, but he knew he’d come out of that house on Neibolt Street with a whole new appreciation and closeness for the boy.

Falling in love with Richie Tozier? That had sneaked up on Eddie, growing so slowly then hit him all that once. It was midnight crawling through windows, and uncomfortable feelings in his chest when Richie flirted with girls and blushing whenever Richie was around. It was sitting closer and closer together, until they were holding hands, always touching. It was kissing, then getting scared, not talking, then kissing again.  _Repeat. Repeat. Repeat_  until they knew there was no running away anymore. 

Forgetting Richie Tozier was the easiest of them all, because Eddie never knew it happened.


	10. meeting again at hs reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> asked by cariebishop on my tumblr!

“This fucking sucks ass,” Richie grumbled angrily under his breath, watching people he’d hated as a teenager muck around the crowded gym that smelled every worse than it did ten years ago. High school hadn’t been a great time to Richie, but he’d come to this stupid reunion anyway just to brag of his success. Which was the only reason to ever go to one. He’d made it through high school, bullied and often beaten, for the annoying things about him that he’d used to become famous. That would show his pretentious snob-ass classmates.

Except Richie didn’t have the things everybody seemed to be talking about. Richie didn’t have a wife, or even a girlfriend, or any kids. In the eyes of his classmates, he’d failed. Of course, Trashmouth Tozier couldn’t get anybody to stay with him. Of course not. He lived alone in his big house with all his money and nobody to share it with. It hadn’t bothered him until tonight, hearing every person he’d grown up with talking about their kids, or their weddings, or their engagements. In settled in his gut with a chill and he thought he might just lose his mind.

“Hey there.”

Richie startled as somebody slid into the empty seat beside him. There were a lot of empty seats around Richie, seeing as he was the only person who hadn’t gotten up to dance. He looked at the person beside him closely before he could recognize who he was. It was the Bambi eyes that gave him away, this was Eddie Kaspbrak. They’d been friends, once, when they were young. They’d grown up on different paths; Eddie began to blossom and got into sports and soon it seemed nobody remembered when Eddie Kaspbrak was a Loser except for Richie. He’d let his friend have his distance, be popular, but had kept Eddie in the back of mind much longer than felt normal.

“Hey, Eddie,” Richie said with shrug. “What are you doing at the Losers table? Shouldn’t you be out there with the cool kids?”

“I always liked the Loser table better,” Eddie said lightly and he smiled. Richie’s stomach jumped a little at that smile, same as it always had when Eddie directed it at him growing up. “How have you been Rich? I know you’re doing television now, right? That’s exciting.”

“Yeah, it’s real exciting until you ask about my wife and kids,” Richie chuckled humorlessly. He brought his drink up to his mouth.

Eddie laughed. “Yeah, yeah. Everybody’s got a real one track mind here. You and I probably have more money than half of them put together, but that doesn’t matter because we don’t have kids. I feel like some priorities need to straightened out here.”

Richie whistled. “You didn’t marry, Eds? Thought some guy would’ve been quick to lock you down. What happened?”

Eddie made a non-committed noise. “You know, you choose your growing career over your relationship enough times you stop bothering to get into relationships.”

“But you’ve got it down now, don’t you?” Richie asked lightly. “So what’s holding you back from relationships now? Can’t be your looks.”

Eddie laughed again. “Guess I’m just looking for somebody who can be the right guy for more than one night.”

Richie eyed him over the rim of his glass. “You know… I can be the right guy for at least two nights.”

Eddie smirked.


	11. i called you at 2 am because i need you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Han <3

Eddie rolled onto his back, staring angrily up at the ceiling. There was a huge thing about how a person should never go to bed angry, but Eddie Kaspbrak had spent most of his life going to bed angry. Angry at circumstances, angry at the people he lived around, and occasionally just kind of angry because that was who he was as a person sometimes.

But Eddie had never gone to bed mad at Richie before, and it was eating at him. He couldn’t even remember what had started the fight, simply that it had snowballed into what was pretty much mindlessly insults before Eddie had stomped away home, turning his phone off. 

He missed Richie, though. He hadn’t, at first, while he stalked around all afternoon feeling the rage. As he was laying in bed now, alone because for the first time in years Richie Tozier hadn’t crawled through his window to join him, Eddie was regretting having a fight.

 _It couldn’t have been that important,_ Eddie thought sadly to himself. He pulled the little purple stuffed dinosaur that Richie had won for him on their first date- after endless hours of trying at the same game- to his chest and hugged it.  _It couldn’t have been worth this._

Eddie rolled over and grabbed his phone, powering it back up. It very quickly started popping up with text notifications. 

 **Rich <3: **eddie im sorry.   
 **Rich <3**: bby it was so stupid im so sorry   
 **Rich <3:** are you rlly mad im sorry   
 **Rich <3**: eds! i know you probably just turned your phone off and will be fine tomorrow but im kind of freaking out  
 **Rich <3**: i love you 

Eddie was pressed CALL before he even thought about it all the way through. The line only rang through one full time before Richie was picking up. “Eddie, holy shit. Baby, I’m so so sorry-”

“Don’t apologize anymore.” Eddie said softly, rubbing his the dinosaur laying on his chest. “I don’t care about that.”

“Did you call me to tell me that?” Richie asked, sounding like he was trying to be timid but Eddie could hear the smirk on his voice. Because he knew Richard Tozier like the back of his hand.

“No.” Eddie answer begrudgingly, but he was smiling into the darkness of his bedroom. “I called because I’ve gotten used to having you in my stupid bed, and now I’m laying awake in bed because I can’t sleep without you.”

Richie hummed on the other end of the line. “So, this call is to tell me that you miss me?”

Eddie groaned and rolled his eyes, even though Richie couldn’t see him, he knew that Richie could tell by the way his boyfriend giggled on the other of the line. “Are you really going to make me say it, asshole?”

“Yes.”

Eddie groaned once more, considering for a moment just hanging up and letting Richie sweat it out. Chances were that Richie would show up anyway, but on the off chance that Richie wanted to make it sweat it out… Eddie supposed that asking for something was better than not being able to sleep. “Okay. Richie, love of my life and ultimate pain in my ass, I’m calling because I don’t like sleeping without you and I want you to believe come over here.”

Richie cooed on the other end of the line. “Babyyyyy…. That’s so cute, you want me-”

“I’m hanging up!” Eddie said into the phone, grinning from ear to ear. “If you love me, you’ll show up and hold me.” And he did hang up. 

And, the exact five minutes and 47 seconds it takes to go from the Tozier house to the Kaspbrak house at a quick jogging pace, Eddie grinned at the sound of Richie scaling up the side of his house.


	12. secret relationship + Suddenly Getting Flustered Because of a Particular Outfit

It had been necessary, at first. Keeping it a secret. It had been so new, and they had no idea where it was going. If it was some fling, a mistake, or if it was a real thing. They weren’t willing to loose the Losers Club friendships over a relationship they weren’t sure about. Because no matter what promise they’d make, Eddie and Richie both knew that sides would be chosen.

Then it was more of a safety factor, when they became pretty damn positive that this was the real thing, another issue arised: telling their parents. Richie was pretty sure that Went and Maggie would be okay with it, although maybe a little bit surprised, but Eddie was completely petrified to tell Sonia. It wasn’t to say that they didn’t trust the Losers- because they would, easily, with their lives- but the more person who knew a secret, the less likely it was to remain a secret.

After Richie and Eddie came out to Went and Maggie, and were accepted with nothing but warmth and love, well then. It sort of became a game. How long  _would_  it take their friends to realize they were dating?

It was pushed a solid year, since Eddie and Richie had stopped  _actively_ acting as though they were in a relationship. Eddie would sit on Richie’s lap during movie nights, they’d hold hands while Richie over the middle console while Richie drove the Losers around. Richie was absolutely sure that Stan had walked in on them, seconds after breaking apart mid-makeout with red sweaty faces and intense sex hair. 

But nobody ever said a word. People still talked to Richie about girls who liked him, and teased Eddie about every single boy he talked to. It was almost annoying, how clueless they were. Richie had always thought he was the biggest idiot but he’s obviously learned that wasn’t true.

Eddie was popping the cap off his water bottle and clipping in back on, not listening as Beverly went on about the guy in her English class that she was  _sure_ was gay, and was  _sure_ would like Eddie. Tapping his foot, Eddie looked around for any sort of escape. 

He spotted Richie coming around the corner, having missed the first half of the day from getting his too-long worn braces taken off, and Eddie’s jump the way it always did. His heart jumping quickly turned into a rapid stutter when he noticed what Richie was wearing.

It was the type of outfit Richie ever wore around anybody else. Richie was always extravagant around their classmates and  the fellow Losers. Even his sleepover pajama shirt had disgusting patterns on them. Even before they started officially dating, Richie was a little bit tamer around just Eddie. When it just the two of them at Richie’s house, Richie usually traded out his bright shirts and tight jeans for clothes that were much simpler. 

This particular outfit that Richie was wearing as he came around the corner was one of Eddie’s absolute favourites. A pair of black pants, bulking up where they were tucked into his lace-up boots, and plain grey sweater with the sleeves pushed up his elbows. His hair was even knotted up into a bun, the way it would whenever Richie was just kicking it at home with Eddie watching Netflix.

It was like they were at Richie’s house in that moment. And that none of the Losers were around. His heart was racing as he felt his face start to burn.

“Hey, Tozier!” Beverly called, before giving a flirtatious whistle. She dropped a hand onto her hip and looked Richie up and down slowly. “Looking like a real fucking snack. What happened?”

For once, Eddie felt annoyed and unsettled by Richie and Bev’s flirty friendship. 

“Went dropped me off right after my appointment instead of letting me go home to change,” Richie rolled his eyes as they reached their friends. He gave Eddie a small, confused little smile when his boyfriend didn’t greet him but Eddie couldn’t do anything beyond stare up at him with wide eyes and red cheeks. “If I’d known he was going to be a dick about it, woulda wore something else.”

“You should dress like a normal person more often,” Beverly replied. “Might actually get your dick wet instead of just constantly talking about it, Trashmouth.”

Richie cocked his brow once, a challenge. Eddie made a small noise, half angry and half hurt, before stepping forward into Richie’s space. He tugged Richie’s sleeves down from his elbows and hid his own hands inside of them. He pressed himself right up to Richie’s chest. He felt his boyfriend chuckle.

“No,” Eddie grumbled directly into Richie’s sweater. “Mine.”

Richie burst out laughing at what Eddie knew must have been their friends faces, but Eddie wasn’t willing to pull away from Richie’s chest to see the reactions.


	13. 9: Secret Relationship & 16: Cuddling for Warmth

Richie actually hated camping. He wasn’t much of an outdoors guy to be begin with, he could be convinced to go a nice post-rain nighttime walk every once in a while, but anything that included the sticky warmth of summer and being outside for hours at a time was a no from him. 

It was a constant sore spot with the rest of the Losers- excluding Bev- who all greatly enjoyed their outdoor summer activities. They always wanted to spend the days at beach or just simply fuck around outside. Go for pointless walks for hours with no destination in mind. And of course… camping. Spending  _days and nights outside._ No thanks. Richie always tried to find a way out of it, and so far he had been successful.

But in the past, he and Eddie hadn’t been dating. It was much harder to say no to Eddie now. With those big puppy eyes and battling eye lashes, Eddie knew how to get Richie under his thumb. 

They hadn’t been officially in a relationship for very long. After leaving for college, they’d both been forced to admit to themselves that their feelings towards one another were more than just the deeply platonic that happened within the Losers Club. After they ended up making out while watching movies at Richie over Thanksgiving break, they had to admit it to each other as well. By Christmas, they were together, but fighting through the struggles of going to school on opposite sides of the country. They’d yet to tell the rest of their friends had their change in status just yet, waiting to see how things went once they could be together in person before getting any sort of ball rolling in the world.

As their summer in Derry finally was kick starting, so was their relationship. They were both serious about, more serious than maybe they should be so early in, but it wasn’t as though they were new to one another’s lives. Or had any other intentions of dating anybody else. 

Richie was, though, sort of considering breaking up with Eddie for forcing him to go camping in May. 

He pulled the blanket tighter around his shoulders, and curled up into a ball on the ground within their tent. Eddie, in just his over sized NYU sweater, laughed at his boyfriend. “Stop being such a baby.”

“A baby?” Richie gasped, barely visible between the blanket around him and black hat pulled low on his head. “It’s fucking freezing! And raining! It’s not even  _summer!! And we’re sleeping outside at night!”_

 _“Ssshhh!”_ Eddie shushed him through giggles, crawling over to Richie’s side of tent. “If you’re so cold, you know the best way to warm up to exchange body heat, right?”

Richie’s face burned bright red at Eddie’s words, despite how cold he was. Since that faithful day in Richie’s bed over Thanksgiving break, the pair hadn’t been particularly intimate as a couple. It was hard when they didn’t see each other in the four months since Chrstmas and had been surrounded by friends or family nearly every moment since they’d gotten home the week before.

Eddie must have been able to read the panic on Richie’s face because he laughed lightly. “Don’t worry, Richard, I’m going to to  _deflower_ you. I’m just going to make you my little spoon.” 

Richie smiled a little bashfully. Sometimes he regretted informing Eddie of his most embarrassing truth- that was he was still holding onto his virginity. It was maybe not a  _shameful_ secret of exactly, but it was one he wanted to keep under wraps. It went against his image enough that Eddie hadn’t quite believed him when Richie had told him.

Richie let Eddie crawl in beside him, curling his arms around Richie’s middle. He felt Eddie’s breath against his neck and sighed happily. He allowed himself to be spooned for a moment before he rolled over and blinked at his boyfriend.

“You know I wouldn’t be totally  _against_ you deflowering me. Just saying.”

Eddie grinned. 


	14. Soulmates and Tripping and Falling Into Each Othe

**One minute, 17 seconds.** Eddie was going to throw up. Your whole life, you had a count down left on your wrist. Ink black, like a basic starter tattoo. From the moment you were born, you would know how long it would be before you met your soulmate. There were always the rare cases, people born without tattoos or their tattoos already set to 0:00. 

Eddie almost wished he could have been one of those people, those weird off people. He suspected it would be better than the terrible anxiety he’d felt for the last three days when his count down suddenly jumped from two and a half years, to three days and forty five minutes.

It wasn’t an unheard of phenomena, soulmate countdowns changing. Specialist always claimed that while fate set you on a track with a destination in mind, but the decisions of the people in question could always change fate’s design. More commonly, it was soulmate countdowns dropping suddenly to 0:00, when a sudden unexpected accident took the life of persons soulmate before they could meet. Eddie had heard less than a handful of stories of people who were suddenly meant to meet their soulmates earlier than originally planned. Eddie didn’t think any of them ending happily.

“Stop freaking out, please.” Eddie’s best friend, Ben’s, voice broke out to him. Ben and his girlfriend, Beverly, had been godsents to Eddie the last three days of him freaking out over the sudden change in countdown. “You’re going to meet your soulmate! Stop acting like I’m dragging you to your execution.”

Eddie sighed roughly. It was easy for Ben to say. He was one of the lucky bastards born with a countdown lower than 5000 days after birth. Admittedly, it was rare for people from their hometown of Derry for counters to go over 5000, as most people never left Derry. His mother had always told her Eddie that  _her_ countdown had been less than one thousand days. Eddie’s original countdown had been a whopping 8406 days, 7 hours and 56 minutes, an almost unheard of high from Derry, Maine. 

Eddie kicked angrily at the ground, not looking up from his feet as ran directly into a person who had been walking in his direction. Instantly, Eddie’s wrist began to sting.

 

 **One minute, 17 seconds.**  Richie’s countdown had spontaneous changed the moment his train had pulled into Union Station, and three days later his head was still spinning. Richie had never made the trip to visit his best friend, Stanley, in New York before but at the last minute they’d decided it was time for Richie to make the trip instead of Stan always having to go out to California. It was, apparently, the best decision Richie had ever made.

Richie had never been completely sold on soulmates, in truth. His father had been born without a countdown at all, and his mother’s soulmate had died when they were only eleven years old. Yet, their marriage was wonderful and they were clearly in love with each other. So, no, Richie didn’t believe that your soulmate was be all and end all of who you were, and who you loved. 

But when his countdown dropped down rapidly when Richie got into New York, he couldn’t deny that his heart had started racing and he had been nearly vibrating with excitement for the last three days.

“Richard, watch where you’re going!” Stan called at his skipping friend. “You’re going to run into somebody!”

“YEAH!” Richie shouted back excitedly. “My soulmate! In-” Richie looked down to check his countdown, then ran into a person who was walking towards him. As their bodies connected, and they both stumbled, Richie’s wrist began to sting.

 

Richie blinked at the man who stepped away from him, rubbing at his wrist. He was wearing a NYU sweater that looked about two sizes too large. His was swooped and soft, and Richie could see the freckles that were dusted all over his nose. His looked up at Richie and frowned adorably.

Eddie’s soulmate was well… he kind of looked like a total disaster. His hair was flying out in a wild whirl of curls, and his glasses looked like they’d been broken and taped back together a dozen times. He wore black jeans that were so tight they  _must_ have been cutting off circulation. And the brightest flannel that Eddie had ever seen. Was…. admittedly pretty hot, in a  _what am I thinking_ kind of way.

Richie held onto his wrist. “Hey.”

Eddie rubbed at his countdown, settled at 0:00. “Hi.” 


	15. Roomates + Love Confession

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> angst warning

Sharing a dorm room with Eddie in college had seemed like such a good idea, at first. Everybody- quite literally  _everybody-_ had told them it wouldn’t be a good idea. That they’d kill each other within a week. Eddie and Richie hadn’t been worried about that. If they hadn’t killed each other yet, they weren’t going to. 

No, they were pretty sure that rooming together would be perfect. And at first, it was. Until Richie realized that college Eddie was pretty… different from Derry Eddie. At first it had been hilarious, watching Eddie getting drunk and doing shots and smoking weed. Richie had held Eddie’s hand while he gotten his belly button pierced. Richie was always willing to play devil’s advocate for Eddie experiencing all the things he hadn’t been able to in Derry with Sonia breathing down his neck.

Until the thing Eddie felt like he’d missed out on in Derry was dating. It was only the middle of December, and Eddie was on his third boyfriend- with nearly twice as many hook ups under his belt. And normally, Richie was huge fan of that hoe life! He supports it in Bill, and in Bev, and he almost felt bad that it bothered him so much with Eddie. 

Stan had tried to explain it for him, in the simple words of homophobia. “Does it bother you with Eddie because Eddie’s a boy dating and hooking up with boys?”

Richie had shut that shit down quickly. In his haste to prove it wasn’t a homophobic issue, Richie had exposed himself to both Stanley and himself. “No, not like that. I don’t care if Eddie dates boys, but like… the boy should be me.”

The whole “room mate” situation got a lot more complicated after that, to say the least. Richie just stared spending as little time dorm as possible, which lead to him avoiding Eddie nearly completely. The good thing- and the painful thing, as well- was that Eddie was busy enough that he hadn’t really noticed.

“Hey!” Eddie said happily, coming into their dorm and tossing his messenger bag onto his twin sized dorm bed. Richie pulled the headphones off his head and offered his best friend a forced smile in greeting.

Eddie yawned, stretching and causing his sweater to ride up. Richie’s eyes fell to the trail of hair disappearing into Eddie’s jeans and his mouth went dry. When he noticed the purple bruises that were in the similar area, his stomach churned and he forced his eyes back up to Eddie’s face.

Eddie smiled at him. “Do you want to go see that new Seth Rogen movie tonight? You like that kind of trash. We can get Chinese from that place downtown after. I feel like I’ve barely seen you in weeks.”

Richie smiled. “It’s Friday. Don’t you and Jonathan have a date?”

Eddie’s brow crinkled up in confusion. “Jonathan and I broke up last week. You know that?”

Richie blushed. “Uh.. Okay.”

“Did you not… how did you not know that?” Eddie seemed to wonder out loud. “I told you. I swear I did.”

“I’m sure you did, Eds.” Richie said, standing up and gathering up his stuff. “I can’t do a movie tonight, I have plans with Stan.”

“You always have plans with Stan,” Eddie grumbled, kicking at their floor before flopping backwards onto his bed. “It’s like you guys are dating or something. Got a secret, Rich?”

Richie swallowed a little roughly. “Yeah, Eds. You caught me. I’m secretly in love with my best friend and it’s eating me apart inside. Ha ha.”

Richie went to grab the handle of their dorm room when he heard Eddie sit up on the bed a little suddenly. “Are you okay?” Eddie’s voice came over to him  “That was your truth voice.”

“My what?” Richie turned around, frowning at his best friend.

“You know,” Eddie shrugged one shoulder. He had a hickey on the side of his neck. “That voice when you want people to think you’re making joke, but you’re actually telling them the truth. Are you in love with Stanley?”

Richie barked out a laugh. “Oh my God, no. Could you imagine? Fuck. No, Eds. I’m not in love with Stanley.” 

Eddie narrowed his eyes as though he was running through things in his head. Richie watched as it clicked behind his eyes. “Rich….”

“I have to go.” Richie fumbled with the door behind him.

“Richie, don’t run away!” Eddie cried to Richie as he disappeared out the door and let it slam shout between them.


	16. you make me happy + i love you

Something was wrong with Richie, and Eddie was a little ashamed of how long it had taken him to notice it. He knew he wasn’t actually to be blamed for not knowing, it wasn’t as though he’d been spending much time around Richie lately. Getting dumped by the love of your life without warning or explanation usually prompts for you to avoid them for awhile. 

 But Eddie been missing Richie a lot, and it sort of made him starting paying attention. He was missing Richie because Richie wasn’t  _around._ He wasn’t around at all. Eddie wondered if he was avoiding the group because of him, the break up, but then he noticed that Stan or Bev weren’t really around either. It made a small pit of nervousness settle in Eddie’s stomach and he finally asked Bill if they’d been kicked out of the Losers Club. 

“No.” Bill said a little sharply. “I w-w-would’ve kicked Richie out for h-h-hurting you but he luh-left himself. Stuh-Stan and Bev chose him.” 

That answer hadn’t sat right with Eddie either, but he’d chosen to accept it. That was when he noticed something was really off with his ex-boyfriend.  

He wasn’t skipping out on classes to goof off like he used to. Even in Ancient Civ, a class they both and the teacher knew Richie could pass with his eyes closed, Richie was there everyday. Sitting in the front row. Answering questions. It was weird. It was wrong. Richie was much quieter. He almost seemed… subdued. Eddie decided he’d talk to Richie, even if it might hurt him. Because as hurt and angry he still was about the break up, Richie had been one of the most important people in his life for more than ten years. And Eddie was going to make sure he was okay.  

After class he cornered Richie. “Hey!” He shouted, slipping between the other students and noticed Richie beginning to speed up. A small sense of panic came over him- Richie could  _easily_ out run Eddie in the crowded halls with those fucking clown legs- and Eddie dove forward without thinking. He collided with Richie harshly, knocking them both into the lockers. 

“What the  _fuck,_ Eds?” Richie cried, shoving Eddie lightly. He brushed off the front of his shirt and frowned at Eddie. Eddie’s breath caught slightly in his throat, this was the closest he’d been to Richie in almost a month. A month before he would have told anybody and everybody that he’d found the love of his life, his forever person. He’d been crushing on Richie since the fifth grade, unofficially dating since the seventh grade on. Eddie still thought one of the best days of his life was last spring, when Richie had taken his hand and asked him to his boyfriend. “Official-like.” 

Eddie looked at him now and his heart still leaped in his chest. Yep. Still fucked up in love. “Are you okay?” 

Richie raised his eyebrows. “Why are you asking me that?” 

Eddie frowned, because that wasn’t how he’d expected Richie to answer his question. He wasn’t defensive, he wasn’t annoyed. He was confused. Eddie gaped at him and swallowed roughly. “You’ve been acting weird, and you’ve been avoiding everybody. I’m worried about you.” 

Richie’s face softened a little bit, but it was still guarded. “You don’t have to lie to me, Eddie. It’s okay.” 

“What?” Eddie shook his head. “What you do mean? Why would be lying-”

Richie suddenly seemed to notice something behind Eddie’s head, and his eyes widened. A deep, sad look came over Richie’s face- some sort of emotion that Eddie wasn’t sure Richie even possessed, wasn’t sure he could even read- and then gave Eddie the saddest smile he’d ever seen. “Carter is coming. You should talk to him. It’s okay, Eddie.” 

“Carter?” Eddie crinkled his nose. Carter had transferred to their school at the beginning of the year had a lot of classes, including Chem where they lab partners. They’d gotten close, having to work together on so many projects, but Richie had never seemed jealous about him. 

His confusion must have been completely obvious, because Richie let out a chuckle. “It’s okay.” Richie repeated himself with a nod. “I know, Eds. I heard about it. It’s  _okay.”_

“Richie, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Eddie started saying, but Richie leaned in, pressed a kiss to Eddie’s cheek and took off down the hallway. Eddie’s eyes welled up with tears and he frantically wiped them away as Carter came up beside him.  


“Hey, Eddie.” Carter said, voice sounding a little colder than usual. Eddie jerked to attention, looking at him with wide eyes. Carter had always been so nice, so sweet, that the chill in his voice set Eddie’s brain spinning out. “I thought you and Tozier broke up.”  


“We did....” Eddie confirmed slowly, narrowing his eyes. “I was just making sure he was okay. I still care about him, even if we’re not dating anymore.”  Carter grunted, and Eddie pursed his lips. “He actually... left because he wanted me to talk to you. He kept telling me it was okay? I’m not sure...”   


Carter’s face transformed immediately. The cold was dropped and he was back to being the grinning, sweet boy that Eddie had known all semester. Eddie’s stomach dropped and he took a step backwards. Carter didn’t even seem to notice Eddie’s sudden unease. “I’m glad he got the message then. I wasn’t sure how much clearer I could make it without having to knock some sense right into him myself.” 

Eddie felt his body go cold. He let out a shaky breath. “What did you say to him?” 

Carter looked startled. “I didn’t say anything to him. I was just talking to my boys in the locker room, and made sure he could hear me. Made sure he knew the truth. That there was something between us, but you wouldn’t make any moves because you were loyal to Tozier after everything. But that he wasn’t good enough for you. I’m sure he already knew that part, though. You guys broke up right after that, I figured we were just waiting enough time for it to appropriate.” 

"You’re delusional.” Eddie breathed out, his hands shaking. “I’m not interested in you, Carter! I’m in love with Richie! I have been since I was like ten! And how  _dare_  you manipulate him like that!  Fuck you! You’re a creep! Stay away from me!”  

Carter called after him, but Eddie had turned on his heel and was rushing through the school. Just praying that Richie was having a smoke by his truck, and hadn’t already left. Some sort of God seemed to have been looking down on Eddie, because Richie was the first thing he saw once he got into the parking lot.  

“Richie!” Eddie shouted, running up to him and grabbing his hands. Richie blinked at him, with wide, startling eyes. “Carter is a liar. And a fucking creep, okay? None of that shit is true. Okay? We didn’t have a thing, I didn’t even he liked me! And I really didn’t know he was like that! I don’t know what you heard him say-”  


“Eddie, he was kind of right.” Richie said detaching their hands. “Even if you didn’t have a thing with him, which... I’m relieved because I wasn’t sure I believed it anyway, but I wanted you to have somebody good enough for you.”  


“Richie...” Eddie shook his head. “If Carter makes up those lies and manipulates you like that, then he’s not good enough for me. At all. Come on.”  


"No, no.” Richie shook his head quickly. “I didn’t mean... him specifically. Just somebody. Somebody better. Somebody who isn’t so... stupid and loud and annoying all the time. Carter when he was... talking about you two should be together, he made all these points about how you’re out my league and that I could never really make you happy. That you’re with me because you feel like you have to be-”  


“Richard. Shut up.” Eddie reached up and cupped Richie’s face in his hands. “ **You make me happy**. And  **I love you**. I have loved you since the fifth grade, and I will love you until the day I die. You’re the only person who’s good enough for me, because what’s good for me is being with the person I’m in love with.” 

Richie bit his bottom lip, his eyes glistening. “Even when I’m loud and annoying?” 

Eddie laughed. “Yeah, idiot. Everything about you is the you I love. Don’t let some random creepy fucker talking in the locker room make you question us ever again, okay?” 

“God, I hope that’s not something that ever happens again.” Richie leans in and kisses Eddie quickly. He pulls back and narrows his eyes. “Do you want me to fight Carter for your honour? He’ll kick my ass, but I’ll do it.” 

Eddie chuckled. “No, we’ll just... explain the whole situation to the Losers. Somebody else will take care of him.” 

Richie grinned, and leaned to kiss Eddie again.  


	17. Chapter 17

Richie stared down at the email n his phone. It had been a whim, applying. He hadn’t planned on it. See, Richie liked his life. No, he loved it. He loved his job at the radio station, he loved his little apartment even if it was sort of small (as his mother constantly loved to remind him) and he loved sharing all of that with Eddie.

It had been for Eddie that Richie had applied in the first place. For Eddie that he’d filmed all those videos and did all those Skype interviews. He’d never thought it would mean anything. He did it because Eddie had encouraged him, because Eddie’s face would light up at the mere mention of Richie getting this job. Because Eddie believed in him so much that maybe Eddie was a little blind to what it would mean if Richie actually got it. Richie hadn’t thought it would be worth while to burst his bubble, because he’d never thought for a second that he would be getting it

Except now…. he had gotten it. Which meant Richie might have the hardest decision of his life ahead of him. Realistically, Richie absolutely could just pack up and move across the country for this job. There was nothing holding him to California.. nothing except Eddie, and Eddie’s halfway completed apprenticeship with a renowned mechanic that Eddie couldn’t possibly give up. 

So, amazing career opportunity or Eddie? It wasn’t a hard decision for Richie. But it would be a fight.

“Hey, baby.” Eddie said, greeting Richie as casually as he had for the last six years. Six whole years since they’d left Derry, dormed together in NYU, and realized pretty damn quickly into living together that these terrible, burning pining feelings they’d both been holding onto for years were in fact, mutual. By October of their freshman year, they’d been together and had never looked back.

Richie smiled, remembering how his friends had taken bets on how long it was going to last. On how many times they’d break up and get back together in the first year along. But they never have. Six years strong and they’d never broken up once. Fights, sure. With their personalities and how their romantic relationship had started when already living together, it was to be expected. But they’d always worked through it, with an kind of maturity that had surprised even Richie himself. When he and Eddie had a huge fight near the end of Freshman year, had gone nearly a week without speaking, but managed to work it out and stay together, Richie had known then that they were each other’s forever.

“Hey, I have uh…” Richie cleared his throat. He walked forward and kissed Eddie softly, lingering there. Because after what he had to say, Eddie might be too mad to let him kiss him anymore. “I have news.”

Eddie blinked, eyes trailing over Richie’s face like he could tell something was happening. Which, of course he could, because Richie had as good as told him there was something happening.

Richie handed Eddie his phone with the email open on the screen and cleared his throat. “I got the job with SNL.”

Eddie gasped, quickly taking the phone and reading the email. “Oh my GOD! Richie!” Eddie tossed his arms around Richie quickly before dropping away again to read over the email. “This is so amazing, I’m so proud of you baby-”

“I’m going to turn it down.” Richie interrupted Eddie’s praise.

Eddie’s face dropped and he looked towards Richie with big, sad eyes. “What the fuck are you talking about? Richie this is your dream and-”

“It was my dream. Ages ago.” Richie corrected, reaching out to cup Eddie’s cheeks. “Before us, before all of this. If I take this job, I have to go live in New York. And you can’t leave your apprenticeship or you’ll loose everything you’ve worked towards.  And you… us… that’s my dream now, Eds. Not some stupid job, I have a job.”

“It’s not a job…” Eddie said slowly, frowning at the email once more. “It’s a career, Richie. It’s a foot in the door. You’re telling me that you’re going to give up what you were working towards since we were 11 for me? For this life?”

“I would do anything for you. Anything.” Richie said, nodding to affirm his words. “I love you. You’re the love of my life. I’m not leaving you here, not walking away from this or doing some long distance bullshit, okay? Your career is here and you already started working for it. So, I’m not taking it.”

Eddie was quiet for a long time, then handed Richie his phone back. “Fine. Then I break up with you.”

Richie’s breath caught in his throat and his stomach fell right through their living room floor.  Eddie quickly pushed past him into the apartment while Richie stared dumbly at where he had just been standing. Richie had figured this would’ve caused an argument, screaming, crying but he’d always envisioned it ending with Eddie seeing it from Richie’s view. Eddie dumping him had never been on the table. Never, even in the most joking of manners, had those words ever been spoken in their relationship and they now felt Richie shaking.

“Eddie…” Richie said quietly, not entirely sure if the words came out. If they did, they were broken and weak. “Please….”

Arms suddenly wrapped around his waist and Eddie’s face pressed between his shoulder blades. He felt Eddie breath harshly against his back. “I’m sorry. I love you. But you have to go. You have to.”

“I don’t want to.” Richie said sharply, twisting around so he could huddle Eddie closer to his chest. “Okay? Eds? This isn’t me giving up something I want to be with you. I don’t want this job, because I love my job at the radio station. I love you, I love this life. Okay? So please please understand me when I say I’m not giving something up. The only way I’d be giving anything up is if I left.”

Eddie let out a small whine against Richie’s collar bone, nuzzling closer to him. “And you’re not going to resent me for this in ten years?”

 

“How could I?” Richie asked tearfully, thinking of the ring hidden in his sock drawer at this moment. “This is exactly where I’m supposed to be.”


	18. 27: Help me I’m being hit on at a bar please be my fake boyfriend for a second

“Oh, my god.” Richie groaned, pressing his hands against his temples and turning away from the crowd. He muttered under his breath for several moments, eyes squeezed shut and staring down at the wooden table in front of them.

Eddie continued sipping his vodka cranberry, swaying slightly not-very-good live music playing in the background. Richie suddenly looked up and drowned the rest of his drink in swallow. Eddie blinked at him, only mildly impressed.

“Do you remember the girl from my Soc class?” Richie asked, shoulder hutched up higher around his neck.

Eddie frowned, pursing his lips. “The one who said you didn’t dress nicely enough to be gay?”

Richie scowled. “Yeah. That one.” He agreed. “Don’t look but she just walked in.”

Eddie lowered his drink and leaned almost all the way out of the booth in search.

“Oh my god, Eddie!” Richie reached out and grabbed the collar of Eddie’s shirt, yanking him back into place. “You’re such a little gremlin. Get back in your seat.”

Eddie laughed, half falling into a seated position. “What’s the big deal? Why don’t you just hook up with her? Then she can blow you off like everybody else who’s had the misfortune of sleeping with you.”

Richie scowled, tossing one of the fries from their shared platter at Eddie’s face. “You’re a piece of shit. And absolutely not helpful. What the hell do I do?”

Eddie rolled his eyes. “Why do you have to do anything? You’ve rejected her how many times? I’m sure she’s moved on.”

“Since Wednesday?” Richie challenged. Eddie shrugged, spinning his straw around his drink. “Look the only reason she even backed off was because I told her I had a boyfriend.”

Eddie crinkled his nose. “You don’t have a boyfriend.”

“Yeah, no shit.” Richie snapped. “But if she comes over here… would you pretend to be my boyfriend? _Please?”_

Eddie blinked a few times, then burst out laughing. “I would never date your trash mouth. Forget it.”

Richie groaned pathetically. “I’m doomed.”

“Agonize a little faster, please.” Eddie said, eyes trained over Richie’s shoulder. “Because she’s coming this way.”

Richie made a loud, distressed noise. He glanced around like he could find a way to escape but subjected himself to suffering, falling back into the booth just as the girl, Sandy, dropped in beside him.

“Richie….” She trailed her fingers up his arm, and Eddie felt his dinner churn in his stomach. He glanced between her and his clearly distressed friend, and narrowed his eyes. “What a coincidence, running into you here. It’s also like fate.”

Richie rolled his eyes. “This is the most popular bar on campus. This isn’t fate. Everybody is here.”

“But we’re both here. Alone. Its meant to be.” Sandy reached out and ran her hand along Richie’s cheek, fingers grazing his lips. Richie’s jaw clenched, and Eddie recognized that look of seconds before Richie and Bill threw down, or before Richie stormed out of a fight with his dad.

“Uh. Hello.” Eddie reached out, poking at Sandy’s arm. “He has a boyfriend.”

Sandy didn’t even give Eddie a first glance- let alone a second look. “I don’t see him.”

Anger flared up in his chest- how could such a rude person think they were good enough for Richie?

“Then turn around.” Eddie said with a voice full of sickly sweet poison.

Sandy turned to him then, openly glaring. Richie’s eyes blew wide and he mouthed “ _thank you_ ” at Eddie. Sandy looked Eddie up and down slowly.

“This is your boyfriend?” Sandy asked him, lips pursed. She glanced back at Eddie once again before giving Richie an eye roll. “He’s too hot for you.”

Richie was giving Eddie the Soft Eyes. “Don’t I know it.”

Sandy made a disgusted noise and pushed herself from the booth. Eddie made a loud gagging noise once she was out of ear shot. “You’re gross. You’re disgusting. Stop looking at me like that. I hate you.”

Richie crawled out of his side of the booth and squeezed in next to Eddie, crushing him into a hug. “You pretended to be my boyfriend to make her fuck off! EDS!”

“Stop!” Eddie tried to push Richie off of him. “It’s not - she’s not good enough for you! That’s all!”

Richie pulled back slightly, the Soft Eyes back. “Nobody except you will ever be good enough for me.”

Eddie blushed furiously and shoved Richie out of the booth.


End file.
